Journalism Tools

Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs is dedicated to restoring public trust in Knox County government by bringing transparency and openness to the governing process. Every effective public policy begins with public trust. Making Knox County Government accessible to the public is one of the many ways Mayor Jacobs plans to build that trust while ensuring great service to Knox County citizens, efficiency in local government, and savings for our taxpayers.

Open government and journalism are directly linked, and many of the transparency tools offered on KnoxCounty.org can also be put to use in the news business.

Here are some links to tools journalists may find useful, as well as a brief description of the types of information you can find. There is a lot more information than this available on www.knoxcounty.org, but these links will be particularly helpful in day-to-day news coverage:

Knox County Property Tax Lookup

E-Commerce Card Lookup

Link: E-Commerce Card Lookup
Here you can find basic Knox County E-Commerce Card transaction information that is pulled from monthly card statements provided by Suntrust Bank. The information includes transaction dates and amounts, the name of the department and employee using the cards, and the name of the vendor involved in the transaction.

Purchase Order Lookup

Link: Purchase Order Lookup Here you can find basic information, based on commodity codes, for Knox County purchase orders. This is a database that is searchable by date, department transaction amount and/or vendor.

Knox County Codes permit and inspection records

Link: Knox County Codes permit and inspection records
Here you can find information about Knox County Codes permits and inspections for specific projects. This page includes links to several applications that are searchable using various criteria, including property address, owner and building contractor.

Knox County budget information

Link: Knox County budget information
Here you will find links to current and previous years’ budgets, as well as links to the Capital Improvement Plan (CIP).

Trustee monthly collections

Link: Trustee monthly collections
Here you will find information provided by the Knox County Trustee’s office concerning monthly tax collections, as well as other financial data.

Knox County Commission meeting agendas and minutes

Link: Knox County Commission meeting agendas and minutes
Here you will find information about upcoming Knox County Commission meetings, including zoning and beer board information. There are also links to official minutes from previous meetings, as well as information about various committees.

Knox County Charter and ordinances

Link: Knox County Charter and ordinances
Here you will find the complete text of the Knox County Charter, as well as the Knox County Code of Ordinances. References to ordinances and the charter are made in brackets on Commission agendas.

Knox County Health Department emergency preparedness

Knox County Health Department reports & data

Link: Knox County Health Department reports & data
Here you will find some online epidemiological reports, as well as a listing of available reports and data that can be released on request. This information includes community health assessments, community health surveys and many other health reports and surveys.

Knox County Public Library online reference resources

Link: Knox County Public Library online reference resources The Knox County Public Library has an extensive list of online reference resources that can be very helpful to journalists. Available information includes Tennessee newspaper archives, as well as topical reference tools concerning geography and culture, genealogy and history, religion and philosophy, social studies and issues, as well as many others. Some of the reference tools require a library card number before access is granted.

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